1st "real" trip to Springbrook this year

With a promised high of 75 degrees and the sun burning off the fog, I had no choice but to head to my favorite nearby birding spot, the Springbrook Nature Center. I seem to find more cooperative birds to photograph there than anywhere else within a 30 min. drive. I had stopped by two weeks ago when the trails were almost impossible to navigate. Today, with the exception of a few muddy spots, they were great!
Of course, relatively few birds have arrived, but it was exciting to just feel the energy of spring. What a contrast to nature going to sleep in October.
I marvel and very much appreciate the City of Fridley maintaining this refuge and encourage you to visit and support it. To give you an idea of the place, I'm showing you some pictures of the layout; tomorrow, I'll post photos of some of the birds that have arrived.
Rather than keep switching lenses on my Canon 20D, I brought along my first serious digital camera, a Nikon Coolpix 995. Although its sensor is only a little over 3 megapixels, it served me nicely for several years. All of the pictures in this sequence, with the exception of the last one, were taken with this camera. (I wish I had remembered to bring along the wide-angle auxiliary lens.)